I love the tenets of Agile, but process for the sake of process drives me crazy. The problem with “rules” and processes is that they becomes a crutch for B and C players to lean on when they don’t know what to do.

It becomes permissible to inflate estimates for the sake of keeping burn down charts looking pretty. It becomes okay to sit in meetings talking about problems rather than working on solving them.

I’ve been burned by both utter lack of process as well as too much rigor. Both suck, but process for process’s sake gives us permission to be mediocre rather than outstanding.

The truth is that process is not the answer, it’s the people. ‘A’ players dig in and get stuff done and communicate along the way. Everyone else blindly follows the process. Agile is more than a process, it’s a state of being that starts with a burning desire to make an impact as opposed to simply checking boxes on a list somewhere.

You’ve found the personal blog of Jay Nathan. Here I like to talk about software product development, entrepreneurship, books, and the wonders of the digital age. I consider myself the luckiest guy alive to have a wonderful family consisting of a one loving wife and three great kids. By day, I’m director of platform product […]more →